Sambalpur, Dec 26: A West Bengal migrant worker was lynched in Odisha’s Sambalpur district following a dispute late Wednesday night, with police arresting all six accused while asserting that the killing was not linked to the victim’s identity or nationality.
The victim, identified as Juel Sheikh, died after being brutally assaulted by a group of men who allegedly stopped him and other migrant workers from West Bengal, asked for a bidi and later demanded to check their Aadhaar cards, police said on Thursday.
According to police, the incident occurred when Sheikh and other labourers were preparing food at their living place in Sambalpur.
A group of six men approached them asking for a bidi. When the workers refused, an argument broke out, during which the assailants allegedly asked the workers to show their Aadhaar cards.
The altercation soon escalated into a violent attack. Sheikh sustained serious head injuries after being struck with a hard object and later succumbed to his injuries while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Sambalpur.
Several other workers were also injured in the assault, two of whom are currently hospitalised. “The miscreants first asked for a bidi and then asked us to show our Aadhaar cards. Later, they rammed Juel’s head against a hard object,” injured worker Majhar Khan.
Another worker, Nizamuddin Khan, alleged that the attackers branded them as Bangladeshi nationals before launching the assault.
The victim’s family and fellow workers have also claimed that the violence was triggered by suspicion over their nationality. However, police officials rejected the allegation.
Inspector General of Police (Northern Range) Himanshu Kumar Lal said the murder had nothing to do with whether the victim was “a Bengali or a Bangladeshi.
” Another senior official said the workers had been living in the area for several years and were familiar with the accused.
“All six accused involved in the incident have been arrested,” police said, adding that further investigation is underway. Political reaction The Trinamool Congress on Thursday blamed the killing on what it described as a “sustained campaign against Bengalis” by the BJP, noting that the incident took place in a BJP-ruled state.
“The lynching of a Bengali migrant worker in Sambalpur is the direct outcome of BJP’s sustained campaign against Bengalis,”
the party said in a post on X, alleging that Bengali-speaking Indians are routinely branded as infiltrators. The BJP has not yet responded to the allegations.
Police said law and order has been maintained in the area and appealed to people not to spread rumours as the investigation continues.
